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Tentacruel has always been a decent special wall but with the introduction of toxic spikes, it became one of the five pokemon who could set-up hazards as well as spin them off (the other four being forretress, donphan, cloyster, and smeargle) making him a good choice for support. Along with another move which was introduced later, scald, meant he could stop physical sweepers dead in their tracks as well.

This is tentacruel's main supporting set. Scald is for stab and the very handy burn chance, toxic spikes and rapid spin are obvious and ice beam is to stop any dragons getting any ideas about setting up. Black sludge laughs at trickers and liquid ooze is handy to stop sub-seeders. The EVs let him take quite a few hits from both ends of the spectrum but unfortunately tentacruel doesn't get any form of recovery outside of rest, chesto-rest can still be an option though.

believe it or not this is an ou pokemon,i thought of it as useless,but then i saw smogon for the first time...
even though it is in ou,it has an awfully low defense and its weakness to earthquake and forrestress has both forms of spikes, steath rock and rapid spin make tentacruel sound useless.however dont underestimate it
has high speed and special defense,ok special attack and will beat u if u think of it as a joke.

other options
venoshock:not to useful compared to ice beam,as ice beam has more coverage
Hex:really useful considering poison and burn
magic coat:allows u to gert around taunt
aqua ring:if u want as much recovery as possible
hp fire:a way to suprise ferrothorn.however,th support tentacruel is perferred over offensive,so hp fire is weakened.im not to sure about this.pm me if im wrong

counters:gyarodos ,jirachi,latios,latias,espeon and reuniclus are its major counters.

Last edited by maciscool; 23rd October 2011 at 2:11 AM.

needs a bol d tentacool withits dream world ability and untouched and with the egg move rapid spin

Tentacruel…has an awesome Generation I sprite.Jellyfishing
Tentacruel @ Leftovers/Black Sludge
Trait: Clear Body/Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP/200 Def/56 SDef
Bold (+Def, -Atk)
- Toxic Spikes
- Scald/Surf
- Venoshock/Ice Beam
- Barrier/Rapid Spin/Aqua Ring
Tentacruel is a defensive kinda guy, and can work as a lead to put down Toxic Spikes and then stall for a while. Scald and Surf are good Water STAB choices, and Scald can burn. Venoshock is another good STAB that’s doubled if the opponent has been poisoned by Toxic Spikes. Ice Beam on the other hand is for those pesky Flying types that won’t get poisoned. Barrier is for raising Tentacruel’s bad defense, and should be the first thing Tentacruel uses. However, Rapid Spin can get rid of the opponent’s entry hazards. Aqua Ring is just another way to stall. Use Clear Body unless Tentacruel’s on a rain team, if that’s the case use Rain Dish. There's not difference between Leftovers and Black Sludge.

I highly doubt anybody would use this, but it could work... maybe.? Swords Dance boosts Tentacruel's low attack, after 3 you might dent something. Barrier boosts Tentacruel's low Defense stat, so I guess the SpDef could be given some EVs. Waterfall is for STAB and Return rounds out the coverage (not to mention is pretty much the only other good physical move he can learn).

Tentacruel

I love this set. Use it on a rain set to make it really awesome. So, use barrier if you are up agaisnt a physical pokemon, when the time is right, get aqua ring to heal you even more. Once everthing is set up, scald might burn the opponent, which will allow you to set up toxic spikes or more barrier. This set is basically there to stall people. If not on a rain set, have clear body as the ability.

Ment to lead off a stall team, this thing is pretty durable and has it pretty good working off a base 100 speed stat. That high speed allows it to throw up a Barrier before most foes attack, shoring up that poor Defense. From there it's just a matter of putting down layers of Toxic Spikes and using Scald to try to burn the opponent's lead and the poison-immune. Since this is a lead set, setting up it's own rain is useful for activating Rain Dish, powering up Scald, and negating other weathers, but if you already have Politoed
setting up perma-rain then use either Giga Drain or Aqua Ring for more ways to regenerate Hp.

As surprising as it may seem, Tentacruel is a firm OU Pokemon and one of the best assets to a stall team, thanks primarily due to its brilliant Special Defence and supporting abilities in Toxic Spikes and Rapid Spin. It can even go offensive with Rain support or through Swords Dance, although stalling is definately the preferrable option. Although it may appear to have many common weaknesses and a weak physical Defence, these weaknesses can be offset by team support and don't PARTICULARLY hamper Tentacruel too much. Despite this, Tentacruel is fairly one-dimensional, as once you see it you'll have a good idea of what it does, but damn is it good at what it does.

Liquid Ooze: A surprisingly handy ability, thanks to the increased power of Giga Drain in Gen 5. This ability allows Tentacruel to single handedly destroy Virizion and Celebi by itself and (if you actually find one) completely neuters Whimsicott, in addition to stopping Drain Punchers in their tracks. It doesn't do particularly much overall, but it does make a difference in a fight.Clear Body: Fairly useless ability for the jellyfish, Tentacruel is not a name that springs to mind when it comes to physical attackers and so Intimidate really won't do anything. Other than that, what else utilises stat changes? Absolutely nothing.Rain Dish: Probably Tentacruels most reliably ability, in Rain Tentacruels health increases every turn. With Tentacruels lack of recovery and due to Rain Support really helping it, this is hands down Tentacruels most reliable ability.
Toxic Spikes Supporter:Nature: Bold Ability: Rain Dish Item: Leftovers
252 HP/240 Def / 16 Spe
Toxic Spikes
Rapid Spin
Scald/Surf
Ice Beam/Protect/Barrier

The only role you're likely to see Tentacruel in. Due to Tentacruels Water-Poison typing, Tentacruel can not only switch in on a fair amount of Special moves, but it can also absorb Toxic Spikes, making it excellent as a counterbalance against it as well as a provider. Obviously, you set up the appropriate layer of Toxic Spikes as the opponent switches, and watch as they helplessly lose their health (unless the opponent floats or is Poison/Steel type). Toxic Spikes is the main draw to Tentacruel due to how well it can wittle down opponents for a sweeper, but its access to Rapid Spin makes it particularly special, being 1 of only 4 or 5 viable Pokemon capable of setting hazards and spinning them away, again adding to Tentacruels appeal as a team supporter. Scald is brilliant for detering Physical attackers as well as dealing some damage, but due to how it can conflict with the Poison generated by the Toxic Spikes, Surf is also a viable option. Ice Beam, although not to strong coming off its base 80 Special Attack, still deals a fair amount to Grass and Dragon Types as well as Gliscor and Landorus, but Protect allows you to safely recover your health and scout for opponents moves, and Barrier further covers up Tentacruels weaker Physical defence, so it's all down to personal preference. Other options include Hidden Power Fire for denting Steel types, Magic Coat to prevent Tentacruel from being Taunted and Giga Drain for facing Rotom-W, but these aren't as reliable as the above choices.

I picture this set as one of the most annoying ones. Aqua ring for extra healing toxic spikes for status and entry hazards. Barreir to increase its low defence stat.Rain dance if it isnt on a rain team. The final slot is divided in between four attacking moves Venoshock for stab and increased power under toxic spikes. GigaDrain for maximum healing. Scald for stab and extra status. Surf for a superpowerful and reliable stab.

Hydro Pump for STAB, or run Scald to get the burn chance. Poison Jab over Toxic Spikes to be able to poison Flying types as well. Ice Beam for coverage. The last spot was kind of random but here's my thought : Protect to stall toxic damage and gain some time and make more damage, Swagger raises Attack but I think it couples well with Scald since with a burn, Attack is halved, so it doesn't change much in the end, and the foe is confused as well so... Tell me if I'm wrong about this one, maybe the game mechanics are not like that. For the ability, Sub-seeders will be mad, I think...

Tentacruel as a leader, F*** Yeah! Rain Dance to set up weather, then Toxic Spikes for entry hazards. Hex to make some damage after TS, and Hydro Pump for Stab. Black Sludge and Rain Dish for recovery. 'Nuff said.

he have 100 speed which is pretty fast and 80 special attack is average good for specs I guess

liquid ooze outside of the rain, rain dish with rain.

hydro pump is for stab, sludge wave although having really bad coverage it have good power with it being stab and kill grass types like nothing (except ferrothorn), giga drain for other waters especially swampert and gastordon, and ice beam for stuff like dragonite and gliscor.

For the most part, you should be using Jellicent. Jellicent's got better defenses, Will-O-Wisp, a better back-up STAB, etc etc. If you're going to use Tentacruel, you'll have to play to it's different attributes.

For Tentacruel, it has a few tricks to boast over it. First of all, it's got a much better SDef. It's also wicked fast for a wall. It gets Acid Spray, which can force switches every once in a while, or lead to some actual KOs. Tentacruel also has more movepool; notably including Giga Drain, Aqua Ring, Rapid Spin, Toxic Spikes, Venoshock and it's abilities, all being useful. Although that's really the cream of the crop, it's quite a bit to boast over Jellicent.

So, establishing itself as a Supporter, Staller, Wall and even tanky, if you can go there.

Toxic Spikes is probably the most important move on the set. Being an important Entry Hazard for Stall teams, it finds itself there quickly. It's abilities, by the way, are all simply OK, except Rain Dish. If you use Rain Dish, you lose access to Giga Drain, but you can still use Aqua Ring. Liquid Ooze is also usable if you want to counter Ludicolo or Ferrothorn or the like. Rapid Spin is valuable support, although could be dropped simply for another move, like Venoshock, which gets STAB and doubled by Poisoned Pokemon. Then, the standard STAB is Surf, because Scald's Burn chance could get in the way; however, it may be best to try it anyway.

This is my own concoction. It's something I threw together and was like "AHA!". When you look at this at first, it seems rather stupid and simple. However, with Tentacruel's actually good base speed of 100 and good STAB as well as back-up movepool means it can be a force to be reckoned with. Why Tickle and Acid Spray, though? Well, I'll tell you like it is; when they get a 50% cut to their Attack, Physical hits don't work quite as well. Acid Spray means they can't fight back well, AND you can usually make a great deal of harm, although altered EV spreads may be needed to make the best out of it. Surf is your generic STAB; you may want to opt for Hydro Pump, though, because it causes a great deal more damage. Giga Drain is for those pesky Gastrodon and Quagsire. Ice Beam takes care of Dragons, and HPRock hits neutrally with Water on everything except for iirc Ferrothorn. Oh, and also, if you're wondering about Special Attackers; Tentacruel has a Base 120 SDef, so it will take those like a pro. There's better ways to put this together, but the strategy is unexpected and can be devastating.

Jellicent, I guess you have to... *Cue sunglasses and Gen I Sprite* Deal with it.

Toxic Spikes for entry hazard, blah, blah. Rapid Spin can stop your opponent hazards. Venoshock is an awesome move combined with TS status, get x2 power and STAB. Hydro Pump and Surf are straight up attacks, with the latter being more reliable. Scald can give you an extra status, although it might not be too helpful with TS out. Water Pulse, however, can add confusion on top of poison.

Tentacruel has pretty good Special Attack. Acid Spray is awesome. It may have low base power, but it has a 100% chance of lowering your opponents Sp Def 2 stages. Awesomesauce. You have a plethora of water STABs to use, two that are just strong, one with status, and one with stat lowering abilities. Sludge Wave is another strong STAB thats also helpful in doubles/triples, and Ice Beam/Blizzard are for coverage. Hex can be used with Scald's burn for extra power, as well as to take out Psychics/Ghosts. Life Orb has mre of a boost than Wise Glasses, but has recoil. I suppose you could use Choice items with this set if you wanted.

although his weakness to ground he have a resistance to fighting it absorb toxic spikes and have immunity to toxic those are some of his advantages especially the toxic immunity
paralyze cripple it you can run lum barry if you like but it bulky (in the special part) enough to be slow too.
I heard he is usable in ubers too.
good partners include zoroark, rotom-W,politoad (for more power), volcarona (greatly benefits from the rapid spin), hydreigon (immune to some of his weaknesses and resist the electric weakness and so on.

The set that keeps statusing your opponent over and over again. Most people on PO don't bother to change the gender of their Pokemon, so Attract should work against most Pokemon with genders. This combined with Confuse Ray makes it really hard to hit you. Toxic gets them badly poisoned, another plus. Scald is a generic STAB move so you're not Taunt bait, plus it gives the bonus of a chance to burn the opponent. The EVs and nature are to maximize Tentacruel's bulk, and Black Sludge for recovery and death to those who Trick you.

These could be usable...

Obviously needs Politoed's Drizzle support for Rain Dish to activate. Come in on the Hydreigon/Politoed/WhatevercarriesSpecs Focus Blast and set up a Barrier on the switch. With a Bold nature, your Defense is 400 after a Barrier. Then use Aqua Ring. You now have very nice defenses, a toxic/Scald Burn at your disposal, and 3/16 of your HP every turn at your disposal. Only use Scald when taunted (wait out the taunt turns to preserve your precious Barriers and Aqua Ring) or on steel/Poison types, as they are not affected by toxic.

Base 80 Special Attack is very much usable with Choice Specs. It doesn't really matter which ability you have. Liquid Ooze to give SubSeeders a surprise, Clear Body prevents stat drops (Special Attack and Speed, most importantly), and Rain Dish recovers HP, but only in the rain. Each of the Water moves has their own benefits, I put them in the order of most effective, in my opinion. Muddy Water can get some accuracy drops, Scald a burn, Surf is the balance between accuracy and power, while Hydro Pump is all power. Sludge Wave just because...STAB...or something...Poison STAB stinks, but it's still a STAB. Ice Beam is the only other Special move that he can learn that's not Normal, Water, or Poison type. HP Bug for Psychics, Ground specifically for Magnezone and Heatran, and Fire for a broader range of Steels, the flying/levitating/ballooning ones (except Heatran). If you don't chose Hidden Power Electric, Sludge Wave hits all Water types except Water/Grounds better than every other type in this moveset. If you do chose HP Electric, then Sludge Wave has only one purpose...LUDICOLO. That's it. One pokemon. Basically, your. Hidden Power should be good for whoever your team is generally weak to.

Last edited by BionicToaster; 16th October 2011 at 6:39 PM.
Reason: Figured out who Poison Stab is good aganist, and added HP Electric as an option

Man, i used to love this thing. Its design is sick, its ability is good.
I am CRUUUUUEEEEL
Tentacruel@Leftovers-Rain Dish(DW)-Timid nature
Toxic Spikes
Protect
Ice Beam
EV's:252 Spec. attack 252 Spec. Defense and rest to HP
Hidden Power Grass /Hydro Pump
ONLY USE ON RAIN TEAMS. Other than that it won't be THAT USEFUL
EV's: Try to boost its defenses and speed. Do some to HP too.

I saw a bird, it was pretty kickass
Tentacruel@Leftovers-Rain dish- Bold nature
toxic spikes
ice beam
any water move
protect
not as good as the other one...

Tentacool has the second highest special defense in little cup, bar mantyke. But tentacool doesn't have a 4x weakness, a weakness to rocks, and can carry toxic spikes, rapid spin, haze, and knock off, moves that mantyke can only dream of having. Just to throw some set ideas out there.

"Support" is the first word that pops into the head of many players when they see Tentacruel. They are correct, as Tentacruel is a great choice for a variety of support roles, including laying down Toxic Spikes and removing entry hazards. Tentacruel also possesses a base Speed of 100, an acceptable Special Attack stat and a wide offensive movepool, allowing it to fit on offensive and balanced teams just as well as on stall teams.

Unfortunately, Tentacruel has an awfully low Defense stat for a support Pokemon. This is compounded by a weakness to the ever-common Earthquake. Despite this, Tentacruel is a wonderful support Pokemon and should always be considered if you are in need of a defensive (or even offensive) Pokemon.

This set uses Tentacruel's ability to lay down Toxic Spikes and spin other hazards away, making it a nice addition to stall, semi-stall, and even balanced teams, particularly those that make use of rain. As an additional bonus, Tentacruel can absorb Toxic Spikes on your side of the field simply by switching in. Its Water and Poison typing, along with its great Special Defense, enables it to switch into a variety of attacks in order to set up hazards or spin them away. Recovering 12.5% of its health every turn in the rain, Tentacruel can then become very difficult to take down. Scald is Tentacruel's best STAB move, offering an excellent 30% burn rate to offset Tentacruel's poor Defense stat. Surf is a decent option instead, as it packs good power, especially in rain, and does not conflict with Toxic Spikes. Protect is the primary option for the last slot, as it allows Tentacruel to recover another 12.5% of its health in the rain, while scouting the opponents move, and forcing them to take additional Toxic damage. Ice Beam allows Tentacruel to hit Dragon- and Grass-types foes, although, be warned, the damage output will still not be great. Hex is an option to take on Jellicent, Dusclops and other spinblockers, though Tentacruel will still struggle to break through them, and Toxic Spikes are required for the move to be remotely useful.

“STING OF THE JELLYFISH”
Ability: Liquid Ooze
Nature: Bold
Item: Black Sludge
1. Toxic Spikes
2. Hex
3. Scald/Surf/Hydro Pump
4. Ice Beam/Venoshock
—This set is designed to spam status. Lay down Toxic Spikes to poison anything that isn't immune in some way, and then Hex will be doubled in power—even if they try to Rest off the poison Hex will still hurt them bad, HA! Scald may sound strange considering you would be mostly relying on Toxic Spikes for status, but it's designed to burn stuff that can't be poisoned (like Steels and grounded Poison-types that can remove the spikes). Surf and Hydro Pump are alternatives—with Surf being fairly powerful and reliable, Hydro Pump being MEGA powerful and UNreliable. Ice Beam sorts out Dragons, Grassers, and Flyers who can't be spiked. Venoshock is interesting in that, against poisoned foes, it becomes Tentacruel's most powerful STAB attack along with Hydro Pump, gaining a scary 130 base power (not counting STAB). It would theoretically work well with Toxic Spikes but I'd rather go with Ice Beam.

“PARTNER-CRUEL”
Ability: Liquid Ooze
Nature: Modest/Bold
Item: Black Sludge
1. Toxic Spikes
2. Surf
3. Sludge Wave
4. Ice Beam/Blizzard
—Tentacruel can also be a decent multi-battle partner with its access to entry hazards and three good attacks that hit the whole opposition. Toxic Spikes is still good here, whereas Surf and Sludge Wave are powerful STABs. Blizzard is hard to rely on, but it also hits every opponent.

“BLADE OF THE JELLYFISH”
Ability: Clear Body
Nature: Adamant
Item: Black Sludge
1. Swords Dance
2. Waterfall
3. Poison Jab
4. Return
—Bit of a novelty set, but it could work in theory. Dance up and then sweep whatever you can—Waterfall and Poison Jab are good STABs, while Return can partner with Waterfall to hit just about everything for at last neutral damage. Clear Body is more useful as an ability here because it stops Intimidators from hindering your power.

“NEUROTOXIN”
Ability: Liquid Ooze
Nature: Timid/Modest/Bold
Item: Black Sludge
1. Acid Spray
2. Toxic Spikes/Giga Drain
3. Surf/Scald
4. Ice Beam
—This makes Tentacruel an even more threatening wall from the offensive side. Acid Spray itself doesn't do much damage, but its main attraction is that it sharply lowers the foe's Sp. Defense, which will make any of your attacks hurt much worse. Toxic Spikes is preferable on this set because not many things would stay in something that hits relatively hard (despite Tentacruel's only decent Sp. Attack) and would switch, probably poisoning something else as they come in, but Giga Drain offers a means of HP recovery. Surf is, again, an all around good STAB attack but Scald offers a means to inflict status on floaters, Flyers, and Steels. Ice Beam sorts out stuff Surf/Scald can't.

Other interesting options—
Tentacruel gets Rain Dish as an ability from the Dream World. If you can get it, it will valuable on a Rain team, with Politoed obviously as a partner. You could possibly even use Rain Dance on Tentacruel instead in absence of Politoed.
*Rest—Tentacruel's only means of recovery outside of Giga Drain and Rain Dish, if you can get it.
*Toxic—becomes an immediate threat to walls and takes only one turn to use, but you'll be missing those spikes soon enough.
*Aqua Ring—could be used on a defensive set for additional recovery alongside Black Sludge.
*Barrier—makes Tentacruel even sturdier.
*Safeguard—could protect you and your team mates against status.
*Rapid Spin—remove entry hazards while setting down your own.
*Magic Coat—can be used to turn entry hazards, status, and other annoyances like against the enemy.
*Muddy Water—could agitate the opposition with the occasional accuracy drop, but its shaky accuracy generally makes it inferior to its other STAB options.
*Mirror Coat—Tentacruel has a lot of special bulk, and if you think you can survive a Thunderbolt or what have you then throw it right back at them with double the power!
*Sludge Bomb—a powerful STAB that is outclassed by Sludge Wave in that it is more powerful and can hit the entire opposition in multi-battles, but Sludge Bomb does have a higher chance of inducing poison (although that is what Toxic Spikes are for).
*Haze—annoys stat-uppers.
*Confuse Ray—another annoyance move.
*Knock Off—getting rid of the opponent's items can either make or break a battle.
*Acupressure—this might have been more useful if Tentacruel got Baton Pass, but otherwise all you can do is hope for a boost in whatever stat suits your set and then go with the flow.